Don Arnoldo
by Babika
Summary: When Arnold gets hit in the head with a baseball, he becomes a different person; Arnoldo Valdini to be specific. How will Helga and Gerald take this dramatic change, and will they too get drawn into the world of the Mafioso?
1. Don Arnoldo

-DISCLAMER-  For Cryin' Out LOUD! I do not own Hey Arnold!!!!!

Summary-  After Arnold gets hit in the head with a baseball, he becomes a different person; Arnoldo Valdini to be specific, a  How will Helga and Gerald take this dramatic change, and will they too get drawn into the world of the Mafioso?  

Pairings- H/A

"Hey Aaaaanooooold!" Harold taunted in a messed up voice. 

"Just throw the ball, Harold."

"Is Aaaanold scarwed?" 

"Oh for crimety's sakes, pink boy, just throw the ball already!" yelled Helga from behind him.

Harold pitched his best curve ball and Arnold swung the bat as hard as he could. He heard the crack of the wood against leather and then another crack when the ball hit a nearby pipe and ricocheted back at Arnold's head!

"Arnold!" Helga ran over to him and quickly slapped her face. "Oh boy what a tart!"

Arnold slowly lifted his head to see a bunch of kids' faces surrounding him. Helga hovered over his head. "How many fingers, football head?" 

"Che cosa sta accendendo qui….?" 

"D'oh!"

Yep...just an average day in Brooklyn for the gang. Ball game in Gerald Field, Harold his usual self, kid some how get's hit in the head...probably gonna get amnesia on top of it.

"Arnold, do you remember your name?" said Sid.

Arnold muttered something.

"What the heck is he saying?" said Harold. "It sounds like Spanish or somethin'."

"Actually", said Phoebe, "It's Italian."

"Why gosh darn it, I didn't know Arnold spoke Italian." said Stinky.

Arnold stood up and brushed the dirt off his pants and then pushed Harold away. "Get outa my way fat boy, unless you wanna get it, if ya know what I mean." 

"NO! I don't KNoW WhAT you MEAN! MOMMMMMY!!!!!!" Harold ran off.

Arnold stalked away. 

 What the heck was up with him?

----

Meanwhile

Big Gino lounged in his large chair. Business was going as usual. The five 4th grade gangs of NY were cooperating as usual. 

"So did the that Sid kid pay up yet?"

"No Don Gino. We gave him a warning yestaday, but he just screemed and ran off."

"You know what to do." 

Gino made a slashing motion across his throat.

A knock came on the door and one of Gino's peons opened it up. 

"Don Gino.." said a nervous looking kid. 

Gino lounged back coolly as the kid kissed his hand. 

"I was wonderin' if I could have an extention, I swear I'll get the candy and the money, I jest need some more time-"

"Hey, I'm a pretty patient kinda guy. Take it easy. I'll give you 5 hours to get your hide back in here with my dough."

"Thank you Don Gino! Thank you!"

Another peon poked his head in. "Some kid with a weird shaped head is here to see you sir!"

"Let 'im in"

Arnold smoothly walked in. "Allow me to intraduce myself."

Gino raised his eyebrow. He was slightly offended that this football head didn't kiss his hand.

"I'm Arnoldo Valdini, son of Michael Valdini."

Gino gasped. Valdini was a name scarecly uttered in the world of the 4th grade mafia. It was always feared that the Valdini kid would eventually find out his true identity. 

"I, I, I"

Arnoldo held up his hand. "I get to be your consigliari, till I can get my own business together, capiche?  Be thankful I ain't takin' your family for keeps, Gino."

Gino tried to compose himself. "And..w-what's in it f-for me?"

"You get to live."

"Sounds fair."

Arnoldo left the room and shut the door behind him. He had a lot of work to do. 

-Later-

Gerald hesitantly knocked on his best friend's bedroom door.  Arnold, or Arnoldo, as he now called himself, had been acting rather strange lately, so Gerald took it upon himself to find out what exactly was going on.  Plus, he had been elected by the class to do it, so he didn't really have a choice anyway.  

"Enta."

Gerald pushed the door open and stepped into Arnold's transformed bedroom.  Arnoldo was sitting in a huge burgundy plush chair sipping a glass of wine.  Gerald assumed it was non-alcoholic.  His eyes trailed over to a wine rack and wet bar.  That baseball must have hit him hard.  Images of Al Capone and other legendary mobsters adorned the walls.  Arnold's appearance had also taken a dramatic change.  His hair was trimmed and slicked back and he had a loose tie on.  He coolly leaned an elbow on the arm of his chair.

"Cherri?" said Arnold offering Gerald a glass.  

"Uh sure."  Gerald took the glass.

"Have a seat."

He sat down in a chair in front of Arnoldo's desk.  "Man, Arnold, what the heck is going on here?"

Arnold raised his eyebrow.  Listen Gerald, as soon as I get my own family up and runnin', I want you to be my consigliari.  Right now I'm consigliari for Gino, but he ain't got long to enjoy it if you know what I'm talkin' 'bout."  

His grammer was different too.

"Sounds like a fair deal, but uh…what's a consigliari?"  

"You'll be my right hand man, so to speak."

"Sweet."

Gerald stepped out of the Sunset Arms with a look of confusion on his face.  Ok, now Arnold was some kinda mafia gangster and Gerald was gonna be his was his consigliari.  He was definitely gonna have to see Fuzzy Slippers about this one.

"Ok tall hair boy, spit it out! What happened in there?"

All the kids just about had strokes.  "Yeah! What happened???!!!!" they said excitedly.

"Well, Arnold is some kinda Sicilian mafia man."

"Wooooooooah."

Arnoldo looked down at the excited kids on the street talking to Gerald.  These were exactly the kind of kids Arnoldo required to build up his mafia empire.  But first, he needed a wife.

TBC.

Please Review! This is my first Arnold fic :)


	2. The Waltz

Disclaimer:  I don't own any minor ideas taken from The Godfather! And heck, I don't own the Godfather either!

After observing all the fourth grade girls in his classroom, Arnoldo had come to a conclusion.  Rhonda would be too much of a responsibility and he had no time for extra responsibilities; he had a mafia empire to build!  Phoebe and Nadine were too smart, Sheena was too weird, Lila was some kinda farm hick; what the heck did he ever see in her?  He felt something bounce off his head.  The Pataki girl who sat behind him.  She didn't know who she was messing with.  

"Arnold, can you come up and show the class how negative fractions are done?"  said Mr. Simmons.  

Arnoldo sighed.  What the heck was up with this guy?  Why should he have to answer to a guy who had the room decorated in rainbow motif and who's favorite thing in life was a tomato sandwich. 

"Sid…"  Arnoldo snapped his fingers and pointed up at the math problem on the chalk board.

Meanwhile, Helga was busy gazing at the back of Arnold's slicked back hair.  She couldn't help but feel slightly distraught about the change in her love's personality and appearance, although he did look pretty darn sexy in a tie.  *Tsssssss *  she thought with a smile and pictured her finger sizzling on Arnold.  These changes weren't that bad.  She would learn to live with them, as a matter of fact, she had even added a little tie to her miniature Arnold figurine that she'd been keeping in her math book.  She opened the book and huddled over it so that no one could see.  "Oh Arnold, how thy hair is slicked back, how thy manner has changed.  These I can take, for you, oh my love.  I would do anything for you."  She further launched into her poem.  "And then, someday, we will live in our small rose cottage with gilded windows and chubby cherubs fluttering about.  The waterfall bubbling and murmuring…whispering….the sound…of our love."  She sighed dreamily and snapped her book shut.  Hopefully no one heard that.  

Arnoldo could hear the Pataki girl talking to herself.  He perked his ears up slightly.  Something about…cherubs?  Weird.  This girl was in her own little world and she seemed to have strange mood changes too.  

The recess bell rang and all the kids stormed out of the classroom except him and Helga.  He stood in the doorway, blocking her way out.

"MOVE IT FOOTBALL HEAD!" she yelled.

He shut the door and locked it.  "I wanna talk to you."

She paled.  "What?! Why the heck would you wanna talk to me, hair boy?!!!!"  She was clearly disturbed by this fact. 

He walked over to tape recorder and pressed the play button. * click*  "The Sicilian Waltz" from _The_ _Godfather _started playing and Arnoldo held his hand out as an invitation to dance.  

Helga stared in disbelief.  What the heck was she supposed to do?  Her dreams were finally coming true!  She hesitantly walked up to Arnoldo and took his hand and they slowly waltzed around the classroom.  

"Ya know, you're beautiful with your hair down."

She reddened.  "What's it to y-you?"

"Oh, plenty. You see…a man needs a strong family to have power, if you know what I mean."

"Ummmm no…?"  

He looked at his watch.  "Recess is over.  I want you to come to dinner at my father's place with me tomorrow night."  He handed her a small piece of paper with the address.  

Back at Gino's

Gino hoped the boys in the lower hierarchy couldn't see his nervousness.  Arnoldo obviously wasn't going to get comfortable in his temporary position as consigliari, and Gino could tell he had other plans on his mind.  He had been asked by Arnoldo to meet him that night at the Ice-cream Stand.  He just hoped Arnoldo would keep his word to let him live.  But he doubted it.  That was why he would need to keep men at the nearby tables just in case.  

TBC!  Please review  


	3. Business

Woohoo! Chapter 3 ^_^  .Do you know how many 'little read lines' Microsoft word gives me with this story? lol.  

"So, Gino, what's on your mind? I'd like to know."

Earlier, Gino had made a decision to keep his cool and be stern with this kid.  Yeesh, what had gotten into him; lettin' some amateur walk all over him the second he comes through the door.  Nope, not this time.  

"Maybe it should be _me_ askin' _you_ what's on _your_ mind, Arnoldo."

"Hey, Gino, no offense intended, just bein' polite."

Pretty good for an amateur.

"So, why'd you wanna see me, Arnoldo?  You don't wanna be my consigliari anymore?"

"I've started up my own 'family', got my own consigliari now.  Be glad your family, ain't mine."  

Gino just sipped on his pistachio milk shake with chocolate shavings.  "So, what do ya want?"

"I think you owe me Gino."

"Correction! I think you owe ME.  I 'took' YOU in."

"Hey, and that was real nice a you.  But I think it was me doing you a favor.  You know my father Michael Valdini.  Howabout, he leaves your father, Mr. Gambino, alone if you give me two hundred pounds of Cadbury mint eggs. "  He stirred his mocha frappuccino.     

Gino was sweating now.  Both of them knew the real source of their power.  "O-ok."

He mentally slapped himself.  How could he give in so easily?!  Well…everybody knew that Valdini had the most powerful family in New York.  

            "But one thing, Valdini."

Arnoldo raised his eyebrow.

            "I own that Sid kid."

            Arnoldo shrugged.  What was Sid to him?  He'd just get another peon to pee on.

Later that night

"Hey Short man!" said Grampa as he climbed up the steps and into Arnoldo's room. 

"Like the room make over.  Hey, is that Vodka?"

            "Hey Grampa.  Have a seat."

Grampa laughed.  Sure, Short man!"

            "Grampa, I'd been wonderin', how come you didn't tell me who my real father is and how come I don't live with him?"

            "Well…Short Man, I guess you're old enough for the real story.  Back when you were just a baby, your daddy had a biiiig argument with the head of the Gambino family.  So Mr. Gambino made a threat on your life if your daddy wouldn't make a certain deal with him.  So Michael sent you to live with us until you'd be old enough and strong enough to come back home.  Since then, the Valdini family has become very powerful."  a gurgling sound came from Grampa's stomach. "Gotta go!!!"

            Arnoldo leaned back into his chair.  This was definitely a lot to absorb.  Well, tomarrow night, he would see his father for the first time and he would have Helga with him.

The next night at the Valdini kitchen

"More penne?" said Mrs. Valdini, holding the bowl out to Helga.

"Not thanks.  I'm stuffed."

            "So, son.  How's business?" said Michael.

            "Business has been goin' great!  I got the Gambino kid right were I want 'im."  

They shared a grin.  "And tell me about your young lady here."

            "Ah yes, this is Helga Pataki, my fiancé."  

            Fiancé? 

            "Uh be right back" said Helga and she almost knocked down her chair when she ran to the bathroom.  She quickly shut the door behind her and slid down the wall onto her butt.  "Oh my Arnold, my life long dream is finally becoming true;  I will soon be wed to you!  As Mrs. Helga Valdini,  I shall live in bliss-"

            Knock knock!  

            "Somebody's in here!!!!!" yelled Helga.  She continued her stanza.  "My beloved, when we kiss…sighhhh" 

            She finally left the door, plucking a bit of toilet paper off her shoe.

TBC  Stay tuned for………THE WEDDING…….DUN DUN DUNNNNNN


	4. Somethin's up

Thanks for the reviews everyone! I honestly didn't expect any for something as weird as "Don Arnoldo"!

If anyone who speaks Italian reads this please don't mind the written Italian part.  I got it off an Internet translator. lol.  And for Ana's question, they are still in 4th grade.  I know the wedding thing is kinda cheesy and I shouldn't have done that, but hey!  What can I do now?  Must get in my mafia/Arnold mood….*sticks in Luciano Pavarotti cd*  

"Prendete questa ragazza per essere il vostro marito che simbolico della moglie siete abbastanza vecchi ottenere sposati?" Stinky the "priest" read slowly from his book of holy matrimony.  Hey! Stinky was better than nothing, and plus he was the only one who was willing to do it.  A real priest wouldn't.  Arnoldo's dad wouldn't even MAKE a real priest do it.  He had said, "Listen, Arnie, we let the priests stay out of our business, just like the ladies.  We's separate from them."

So, now, Arnoldo stood facing Helga in Holy matrimony in Gerald Field, which had been festively decorated for the occasion.  Everyone was there, even Big Gino.  

"Whatever that means, but ohhh I do I do I do I do I do!!!" said Helga.

"Prendete questo boyto siete il vostro marito simbolico fino a che non siate abbastanza vecchi ottenere sposati?"  That took about 10 minutes to say.

"Sì" said Arnoldo.

"The rings?" said Stinky. 

 Chocolate boy held the pillow out and they slipped the rings onto eachother.

"You may now, _kiss_ the bride!" Stinky stuck his tongue out at the word 'kiss'.  "Gosh darnit,  ain't they kinda young to be gettin' married?"  Despite the strange circumstances, Stinky felt as though he had found his calling in life.  "Why, I think I'm gonna be a priest when I grow up!"

Festive Italian music struck up and everyone started eating like pigs.

Meanwhile…

Gerald had been forced to leave the reception a little early to finish some business for Arnoldo.  But first, he had to see Fuzzy Slippers about some mafia tips.  Arnoldo wanted to get the whole thing down to a tee.  

He knocked on Fuzzy Slippers' door.  "Come on in Gerald."

"How'd you know it was me, Fuzzy Slippers?"

"Some mafia guy called and told me you were comin'."

"Uh…that would probably be chocolate boy.  He's really gettin' into it, man!"

            "Since when were you in the mafia, Gerald?"

            "Since my best friend got hit on the head with a baseball, but listen I'm in a rush-"

"What do you need, boy?"

"I need a list of mafia-isms, you got any?"

"Well I should….have some here."

"Sweet! Gotta go! Thanks Fuzzy Slippers man!"

"Hold on a second there"  Fuzzy Slippers held his hand out.

Gerald sighed and slapped five bucks into his hand.  "Man, you're really drainin' me!"

"Boy, you got plenty to drain if you in the MAFIA!"

The next day

Everything was going perfect for Arnoldo.  He had the hall monitors and school newspaper in his pocket, Lorenzo had graciously agreed to pay Arnoldo 20 bucks a month, he had a wife, and his power was steadily growing.  But something was up.  Something wassssss up.  

"Hey Arnie!!!!!" said Curly, practically flying into the room.  

Arnoldo sighed, not this kid again.  He already owed him 6 bags of molted milk balls.

"Umm..Listen!!!!  I need another bag of Swedish fish, I really really need it!"

"Sorry, Curly.  No can do. You already owe me 6 bags of molt balls. I'm expectin' you to pay that up tomorrow by the way." Arnoldo paused.  "With interest."  

Park stepped into the room.  "Don Arnoldo."

Arnoldo gave a slight nod.  Park had become somewhat of a brother to him, though not as much as Gerald.  He had never really gotten to know Park that well.  His little "sanctuary for 4th graders" made a convenient meeting place for Arnoldo.  

"Park, please escort this nutcase out of here, thank you!  He's spoiling my day."

TBC.  Darnit! my mom needs the comp for homework.  Well, I hope this was ok. stay tuned to find out "what's up''!


	5. Dinner

Hey everyone! Sorry for the wait.  My mom had to use the computer a lot so I didn't get a chance to write yet.  Hopefully I'll be able to finish this story over Easter break.

 In answer to anyone's question as to why H/A's relationship moved so fast, well, I guess Arnoldo's just a controlling guy and doesn't really need to ask anyone what they want.  Kinda like Michael Corleone basically telling Kay to get in the car with him.  Now, I need a vote, who wants Arnold to go back to normal and who wants him to be sucked permanently into the deep void of organized crime?

            "The Valdinis are expanding their borders a bit," said Arnoldo whilst tapping a ballpoint pen on the edge of his desk. 

            "But Arnie, what are you gonna do about the other five families?" said Peapod kid who had also made his way into the inner circle as the family advocate.

            "Its pretty complicated but it will only take a day to finish the job.  I sent Gerald out to tie up a few minor kinks.  He'll be finishin' that while me and my wife are goin' out for dinner in center city tonight."  

            Everyone nodded.  Park spoke up.  "So, uh you don't mind my asking, but what exactly is this plan?"  

            "One word boys, trash can day."  Arnoldo let his smile slightly widen as he waited for the reaction of everyone else.

            "Oooooooh.  I get it now!" some of them piped up.

Later that night.

Helga still called him names like 'Football head' and 'Hair boy', but Arnoldo found a certain charm in it because he knew that beneath those words, there was affection.  He held up his champagne glass (NA). "A toast, to us."

They clinked glasses.  Things were still somewhat awkward between them so they sat there in silent tension.  When the plates arrived they still hadn't said much of anything.  Arnoldo just sort of sat there and casually watched her.  

"Uh, is there something wrong with my clothes, football head?" 

He shook his head and smiled.

Creepy.  But now that Helga thought about it, it was a good creepy.

She poked at her lobster.  Why the heck did she order this? She couldn't get the stinkin' meat out.  And there was some kinda weird green stuff on it.  It looked like diarrhea or something.

            "Lemme have a bite of your linguini Football—"

The sound of shattering glass pierced the air as rocks flew through the window of the small Italian Restaurant!  Arnoldo quickly knocked Helga onto the floor and shielded her with his body.  The stinging feeling of stones hit his back.  A warning.  But from who?  And how the heck did they know that he and Helga were going to be in Center City?

When the stones stopped coming, Arnoldo rolled away.  "Are you ok?" 

She nodded. She wasn't exactly expecting to have rocks thrown at them while they were eating.  "Yeah, it's no big deal.  Thanks…for shielding me."

Arnoldo nodded.  He was doing a good job of masking his rage at whoever had done this.  NO ONE invaded their personal life like this.  

"Hey, let's get outa here?"  He held out his arm to her and she took it.  There was a sort of tacit between them now.  A tacit that something had changed when that rock flew through the window.

"I wanna know who the HECK threw rocks at me and Helga!"  yelled Arnoldo angrily slamming his fist on the desk.  "And I wanna know how they found out were we were eating!!!" 

            "You think its Big Gino?" said Gerald with his calmest voice.  The answer was pretty obvious but he was really trying to calm his friend down.

            Arnoldo calmed down.  If it would have been anyone else asking him that he would have snapped at him.  "I can't see how it could be anyone else." He paused.  "So, is everything set Gerald?  Everything's gonna go smooth tonight?"

            Gerald nodded.  He had it all worked out perfectly.  Nothing could possibly go wrong.  Arnoldo poured them some vodka.  Tonight was sure to put the Valdini family on top.  

TBC Stay tuned for "Tonight…."


	6. On Top

Sorry it's been a while.  Hectic weekend  X_x   Heheheheh.  I don't own Grand Theft Auto III

* * *

"What the heck does Valdini want at this time a night?" said Gino irritably while walking down the sidewalk with his three body guards, two brothers, and consigliari.  He had been right in the middle of playing Grand Theft Auto III.  Don Arnoldo had called the heads of the five fourth grade families for a meeting.   "You'd think that Arnoldo would get the clue after I had Mick throw rocks at 'im but-"  

A huge guy in a dark suit loomed above him.  "Hey Gino, I heard you had an appointment."

"Gino looked up into the eyes of that retarded 14-year-old, Torvald.  So Arnoldo had recruited him.  "Out a my way ya retard!"  Said Gino.  He snapped his fingers.  "Boys."  

Torvald didn't waste much energy in picking three of them up in each hand and dropping them into the stinking pit of a dumpster.  Gino looked up at Torvald.  _How could I be so freakin' retarted?!_  "Hey, forget what I said about the retard thing.  Listen, we can make a g-great-"  Torvald's huge hand grabbed him by the neck and tossed him into the trash.  He felt a warmth in his pants and hoped that no one could smell it despite the horrific odor already inside the dumpster.

"Ew it smells like pee in here!"

***

            The next morning

Gerald read the school newspaper aloud to everyone in Arnoldo's office.  "Hey check this out! This week's headline says, 'Big Gino humiliated when dumped in dumpster.  Pees in Pants!  Heads of the other Five Fourth Grade Families Receive Similar Fate.  Believed to be the doings of Arnoldo Valdini'."  

            Helga suddenly barged into the room while holding the paper.  "So, Football Head, is it true or not?"

            "What?" said Arnoldo playing dumb.

"That you had all these guys dumped in the trash, duh!"

              Arnoldo shrugged like it was no big deal. "Yeah."

            "Sweet! Didn't know ya had it in you Football Head!" Helga whacked him on the back, poured herself a glass of champagne, and flopped onto his lap.  

            "Hey Park, I decided I want PS119 to beat PS116 in the little league series, alright? I got some major mini Oreo bets in that. Ok?"  said Arnoldo.

Yes, he had power at his finger tips.  Anything he wanted, he got.  Just a snap of the finger.  But something was bugging him.  Who told Gino that he and Helga would be in Center City?  He looked suspiciously around the room.  It couldn't be Torvald.  He did all the dirty work, and got payed with exuberant amounts of Fig Newtons.  Yep Torvald had a fetish for fig Newtons.  Then there was Park.  He was a nobody until Arnoldo took him in.  Heck, he practically didn't exist until now.  Peapod kid…he was already rich so why did he need to be Arnoldo's lawyer?  Probobly because his mom wouldn't let him have candy so he could simply get it in return for his services.  Arnoldo didn't even question Gerald's loyalty.  He was more than a brother to him.  

            Chocolate Boy.

            "Hey guys, you mind leavin' for a second here?" said Arnoldo.  "Except Chocolate Boy."  He motioned for Chocolate Boy to have a seat.

            "Yeah, chocolate, chocolate."

            "Ok Chocolate Boy, how much has Gino been payin' you?"

            "Nothin', I swear!"

            "I'm not lettin' you off that easy.  As a matter of fact, I don't remember you bein' around when I left to pick up Helga."

            "I, I was at my Aunt Mary's house, she gave me chocolate!"

            "So that's were that big bag of chocolate radishes came from, huh?"  Arnoldo pointed at the huge bag Chocolate Boy was clutching.  

            "Ok! I did it, and I don't care cuz I'd do it again for chocolate chocolate chocolate choc-"

            "I will give you TEN seconds to get out of the Sunset Arms."  

            With hyper chocolate-induced energy, Chocolate Boy bolted from the room as Arnoldo loudly counted.  "One, two, three…."

            Torvald stuck his head in and raised his eyebrow.  Arnoldo raised his eyebrow back.  "Take care of him."

***

Ok! I need a vote! Who wants Arnoldo to go back to normal in the near future?


	7. Ei Ei Ei

**_IN ANSWER TO SOME OF YOUR QUESTIONS_**:

Hey!  I hope everyone had a happy Easter and Passover.  It seems everyone is wondering why the story is going so fast and why H/A aren't living together since they are married.  Well to answer the second question, I will translate what Stinky said in Italian during their ceremony.  "Do you take this girl to be your symbolic wife until you are old enough to really get married?" or something along those lines.  Yes, I know it is REALLY stupid, but hey, I was having fun, ya know?  In answering the first question, well I don't know what the answer is except that Arnoldo is a controlling guy and doesn't need to ask people for anything.  For instance, he didn't need to ask Helga to marry him; he just announced she was his fiancée one night at dinner.  That's why she suddenly bolted to the bathroom to recite poetry.  So, yeah, I guess Arnoldo didn't want to waste anytime ASKING Helga for her hand in marriage.  He just decided to announce it, which caught her off guard a little.  I guess she got used to the idea pretty quick though.  Well, here is the chapter!

* * *

**Arnoldo's Room**

"Hey Shortman!" said Grampa while coming up the attic stairs to Arnoldo's room. 

"Hey Grampa."  Arnoldo sat at his desk looking over a number of various forms.  _Lets see…Sid owes 3 pounds of juju bees and 30 bucks…_Arnoldo thought as he mulled over the papers. Sid's days were certainly numbered. 

"Listen, Arnold…o…I have sort of bad news."

"Oh great, don't tell me Arnie is coming over."

"Yep."

"Yeesh!  Just what I needed right now!  I'll have to give him over to the Irish mafia, they can watch him.  That little country hick can't even cross the street without me having to save his—"

"Whoa there Shortman!  Just promise me you won't have him killed in elaborate ways or anything like that.  Other wise you can do whatever you want to him…"

"Thanks Grampa."

"Oh, and don't be giving him any sherry or vodka…or sparkling raspberry for that matter…"  Grampa's stomach started to rumble. "Gotta go!" 

***

**Arnoldo's Room**

The room was dimly lit, _La Donna Mobile_ softly played in the background, and everyone sat around a large glossy table sipping drinks and speaking Italian, which Arnoldo insisted everyone know.  

"I've been thinking we should use Park's little underground retreat as our first casino location." said Arnoldo.  

"We're going into the casino business?" said Gerald curiously.  This is the first he'd heard of this.

Arnoldo nodded.  "We're still staying in candy because kids need it.  Of course, our biggest customer (Chocolate boy) is still being fed from a tube right now, but he'll be back.  He's just not aloud in the inner circle anymore.  So, anyone got that baseball game set?"

Peapod kid spoke up.  "Why yes, Don Arnoldo."

"Good, it'll give me and Helga something to do."

* * *

**School**

"Loooooooooooook it's Mr. Mafia man Aaaaanooooooooooold.  Is he gonna choke me with a haaaanger?"  Said Harold in his most retarded voice.

"Um Harold, I really don't think you should do that." said Mr. Simmons who had quickly learned his place when he found a severed tomato sandwich in his bed one morning.  

"MY uncle is in the REAL mafia—" Harold began.

"Now, Harold! Quiet, ok?  Class, please open your science books to page 73 were we will be learning about how a rainbow is formed!"  

*** 

            **Harold Berman's House**

*Ding-dong!*.  Harold leaped up from the couch and flung open the front door.  "Uncle Chaim!" yelled Harold with excitement.  

            "Take it easy.  Oh boy, ya got big, nephew.  Been eating to many dumplings?"

            "Naaaaaa, just 'Mr. Fudgies'." 

            "Ei! Fudgies Shmudgies!  Ya gotta start eating healthy or you'll have to have a pacemaker like your uncle David!"

            "Nuh-uh! I don't need a pacemaker! Mommy!!!!!!!!"

            "Ei! That boy!" 

            Mr. Berman walked into the room.  "Chaim. So..how's business."

            "It's going great, haven't had a _shvarts yor_ yet I tell ya!"

            "Well, that's good news." he said awkwardly.

            "I tell you, there's so much opportunity in it, just come on over some time and I'll show ya around!  And ya know," Chaim nudged his brother with his elbow.  "Young Harold here needs a trade if you catch my drift."

            "Well, actually, Harold has been working at the butcher shop." Cut in Mrs. Berman.

            "Who asked you?!" Yelled Chiam with a slight bit of  humor in his voice.

            "Hey Uncle Chaim!  There's this kid in my class called Arnold, and he calls himself Arnoldo Valdini or somethin' like that.  I dunno, and—"

            "What did you say?"

            "Uh…There's this kid in my class and—"

            "No!  The name, the name."

            "Arnoldo Valdini….Uncle Chaim, you're scaring me…"

            "Valdini…Ei ei ei.  _Es brent mir ahfen hartz._  I have a heartburn, get me some pills."  Chaim sat down into the soft couch.  "So Michael Valdini's got an heir huh?  Well, you better be careful, unless you got the brains to take over his business, which I don't think you do, I'd stay clear of this Valdini kid if I were you, Harold."

            "I want a Mr. Fudgie!"  Harold had been stashing them outside in a secret cooler since his mom banned them from the house.  "Uh, I think I forgot to take the garbage out."

            "Oh my little Harold is so helpful!" said Mrs. Berman proudly.

            Mr. Berman rolled his eyes.

            Harold wistled as he dumped the trash into the dumpster.  He sneakily made his way to the back of the alley between his house and his neighbor's.  He felt inside the cooler.  "Come to pappa—"  Harold felt someone strong and powerful pull him down to the ground and then cover his mouth.  "Mmmmyyyy!", he gave a muffled cry.  He never got that Mr. Fudgie.    

* * * 

**Metro Station**

The bus roared away as Arnie stood blankly on the concrete Metro station ground.   He chewed a piece of flavorless gum, his favorite.  He blinked one eye, then the other.  His cousin would probably be here soon, oh well, it didn't matter if Arnold was late.  Arnie was pretty occupied with the texture of his gum.  It had gone through the first two stages.  Stage 1: sweet and juicy.  Stage 2: hard and rubbery.  Stage 3: Begins to disintegrate in mouth and gum particles get into teeth.  Stage three was his favorite.  

"Hey, Arnie." said Arnoldo walking up to Arnie.  There was a bunch of people with him.

"Hey."

"There's someone I want you to meet."  Everyone turned aside to reveal a bunch of street urchin type kids.  "This is the Irish mafia, Arnie.  They're gonna be your tour guides for the week."

"Oh."  Arnie listlessly followed them into the crowd.

"That takes care of that!" said Arnoldo. 

---

            Ok, That chapter probably was boring, but I have big plans for the next chapter and Helga is gonna play a BIG role!  So stay tuned for…."The Game."


	8. Smooch

Disclaimer: I do not own _Xena: Warrior Princess_!

Hey, sorry it's been a while.  As a matter of fact, I'm not really sure _what_ I'm going to do in this chapter.  I guess I'll just start writing and see what happens heheh.  And well, I promised you Helga so I'll give you Helga!!!!  What am I doing? No one reads these little authors notes…

In this chapter we will get to see what is beneath the exterior of Don Arnoldo….

*Dramatic Italian music starts playing*

***

**Arnoldo's room/office**

"Wait, just one more hour!!!"  Begged Curly who knew it was the end.

Arnoldo considered what to say but decided that pausing would weaken his imposing aura, so he just pulled something out of the top of his head.  "Curly, I gave you five extra days, so what I want you to do is go down town and buy what you owe me.  You think I'm stupid? Huh?  You don't think I can see a wad of cash _bulgin'_ out of your pocket?  And when you get down town, don't even think about runnin'." 

            Curly backed out of the room muttering like a nut case.  

            Arnoldo shook his head and looked over at Helga who was lounging with a bag of pork rinds.  

"Ya know, I had this weird urge to give him advice or somethin'."  Why was he admitting this to Helga?  There was something about her that made him want to share his feelings.  Like she knew him better than anyone else.  Who knew how though.  He saw something flash in her eyes, like a recollection of sorts.  She shook it off.  

What should she do?  Give _him_ advice? He wasn't exactly the type to ask for it.  As a matter of fact, he hardly asked her for it when he was just plain old Arnold.  "Pork rind?" She held the bag out.

Arnoldo ripped the bag from her hand and tossed it onto his automatic couch.  

Helga stared at him wide-eyed…"Uh…so I guess you don't want any pork rinds…?" 

"No…I want you Helga."  

"Whoa there, I mean we are married and stuff but its not for real….but what the hey!"  She grabbed him, smooched him, drew back, and smiled with smug satisfaction. 

             Arnoldo, the powerful Sicilian mafia man, stumbled slightly to get his bearings.  Even without the potent taste of pork rinds, the kiss was powerful.  "_Scorze sante del porco…_"

"I guess you can say I've had a little practice…"

***

"And that is how you get rid of a body." said Patrick McHugh, one of the Irish hit men.  

"Oh." 

"Say, Arnie, you ain't very talkative, huh?"

"I like gum."  Arnie listened to the rhythmic sound of his teeth chewing the gum and his jaw slightly popping from the work out.  The gum was in stage two now, hard and rubbery, so he had to put a little extra effort into chewing it. 

Patrick shrugged and walked away.  Don Arnoldo had paid him quite a bit of Reese's ® peanut butter cups to train this kid, but nothing seemed to be getting through to him.  Maybe he would go eat some of those now as a matter of fact, and then get to the dead gum chomper later. 

"I have to go." said Arnie.  It was time to go back to Arnold's house.  Arnold's grandma had a container of curry from India with a recipe label to die for.

Patrick shrugged, what was it to him?

* * *

"Oh, hey Arnie" Said Grandma who was busy karate chopping a watermelon.  

"Do you have the curry powder?"

Grandma looked at him suspiciously.  "…EEEEEEEEEEEE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!" Suddenly she leaped onto the table and smashed a slice of watermelon over her knee.  "I am XENA, WARRIOR PRINCESS –"

"Oh Pooky, I hope you're not doing the _Xena_ thing again," said Grampa from somewhere in the house.  He entered the kitchen.  "Watermelon again, Pooky!"  

    Arnie shrugged, found the curry, and wandered up to Arnoldo's room. 

"So, Arnie, did Patrick actually do what I told him to do?" 

Chew.   Chew.    Chew.  

"Show me."

Chew.

Curly suddenly burst into the room.  "Here! Here's your candy, ya don't have anything on me now, hear that? Nothing!!!!!!!!!!"  He flew out of the room.

"Go and get him Arnie.  This isn't all the candy."

Arnie shrugged lamely and suddenly turned around and left.

Much to Arnoldo's shock, five minutes later Arnie was back with Curly and had him by the neck.  So, Patrick had kept his end of the deal.  He would have to turn him into a Sicilian.  

"Good job, kid.  Tomorrow, I want you to bring Patrick over here, got it?"

"I have to change my gum."

Helga waltzed into the room.  She was in an extremely good mood, considering, well nothing! She didn't have anything to consider.  Everything was perfect.  She was married to Arnold and they were powerful and happy.  

"Hey Helga." Chew, chew, chew.

She whipped around.  "Who the he—" 

Oh great, the weird counting gum kid.  

"Go count some pig feces pale boy," Said Helga in annoyance.

 "Hey, Arnie's a new hit man now, easy on him," Arnoldo joked.  

"Can I talk to you?" Chew, chew, chew.

"NO!"  She shrieked.

"Hey, Arnie, what's the big idea hittin' on my wife?" 

"One, two, three, four, five…" Arnie slowly counted the last of his chews until his gum would disintegrate for good.

"Get outa here ya weirdo!" Arnoldo shooed him away.  He shrugged at the other people sitting in the room.  

* * *

Later in Helga's room

"Oh my beloved!  We have finally bonded together as soul mates, as one, yet…I still miss the compassionate, sensitive Arnold that I love, who adorned me with his umbrella, complimented my bow…" She entered her large closet and locked herself in.  She had not been in there for a while and the old cheese shrine was getting kinda moldy.  After all, she had made it out of chunks of cheese that fell out of his sandwiches about two months ago.  "Yes, kind to me you are, but to others, you are not, OH THE DAY!!!!!!!!!! WHY HAS FATE BEEN THIS WAY?!  WHY?! WHY?! WHY?!!!!!!"

"Helga, are you ok in there?" the muffled voice of her drowsy mom sounded through the doorway.

"Yes, Mirium, I'm fine."  Helga gritted her teeth and turned back toward the shrine. 

  She spoke in a hushed yet anguished voice.  "Oh words to describe, the day I die; will it be of satisfaction, or bittersweet sorrow? Sigh."

* * *

TBC I gotta do my homework.  Sorry to leave it there; kinda a weird chapter conclusion if you ask me.  But now, you can see how Helga is dealing with this drastic change.  At first she was nonchalant about it, but then she realized how much she misses the old Arnold.  Anyhow, I need more votes.  I only got 7 so far, and I would like to see more opinions.  The vote:  Should Arnold stay Arnoldo, or turn back into Arnold.  


	9. Yeesh

Hey!!! Well, I felt "sick" today so I figured I would write the next chapter!!!! It seems like the votes are pretty much even and everyone has these mixed feelings about what should happen to Arnoldo, so, well, you'll see, and I think that you will like what I have in store for him later.

_ I just want to remind you_,Arnoldo owns a casino now.  

            Hey Puppiesocute, _Scorze sante del porco_ means "Holy pork rinds" ^_^

            _Non potete sentirli comunicare con voi il capretto _means "Can't you hear me when I talk to you, kid?"

            And, _Vedali_ means, "See ya".

* * *

            The champagne fizzed out of the bottle as Gerald popped the cork out.  "I went over to the casino yesterday, looks like we're makin' some serious mulah on it," he said with a grin.

            Arnoldo nodded.  "I'm putting Helga in charge of our gambling business, so if anything needs to be dealt with that, just let her know, capice?" 

            Everyone in the room nodded.  

            "Hey Shortman!  Get down here!  Your old man's on the phone!"  Yelled Grampa from downstairs.

"OK!"  Yelled Arnoldo.  "Guys."  He motioned for them to leave and picked up the phone.  "Hey Pop."

"Arnoldo!  Tell your old man how you've been?" said Michael Valdini elatedly.  

"I got a casino now."

"That's my boy.  I hope you have someone you _trust_ runnin' it."

"Uh…yeah, that would be Helga…" Arnoldo could hear his dad pausing on the other line.

"Son…..you know that the women don't get involved in our business.  How many times have I told you that?_ Non potete sentirli comunicare con voi il capretto?_"

"I know, I know, it's just that Helga's tougher than any capo I got.  You met her.  I don't know anyone else who would run a casino as good as she's gonna be able to.  Besides, Gerald's got enough on his hands bein' consigliari—"

"Ok, ok, take it easy kid! Yeesh!" Mr. Valdini chuckled.  "Just seein' how you are.  I got ticket's to Dinoland for us; free as a matter of fact."

Arnoldo could hear voices in the background.

"Hey! Gotta go, son.  I've got some important business to take care of. _Vedali._"

"_Vedali._"

* * *

THE NEXT DAY

"That was my grandfather's first business." Arnoldo pointed at a small spice store.  "My father showed me yesterday."

"Sweet, Football Head.  So, uh, about this casino thing." she paused while a passerby bent over to kiss Arnoldo's hand.  

"How do you feel about it?" he said and reached to grab hold of her hand.

She blushed slightly. "Well, something to do on the side I guess, right?"  

He nodded and squeezed her hand.  "Want some coffee?"

* * *

Arnoldo's Room

"I'm not sure if you wanna call this bad news or not, but they got Arnie," said Park.  

"He probably doesn't even know it." said Arnoldo, rolling his eyes.  "Who was it?"

Park sucked in some air.

"I have reason to believe it was Vincetto," said Peapod kid in his matter of fact voice.

"Vincetto??? When the heck did he come into the picture?" Arnoldo frowned.

"Remember, Don Arnoldo, we did start a war when you had the heads of the five families spontaneously dumped into the trash."  

"And he thinks he's actually gonna _hurt_ us by takin' ARNIE out?" Arnoldo started to laugh.  "This is great!"  

Everyone in the room laughed on cue.  

"Listen, we're gonna act like this never happened, capice?  We're just gonna let this war play itself out.  If Vincetto wants to take Arnie, then let 'im.  They sure as heck can do anything they want with him.  Any news on the Berman kid?"

"He's recovering.  It was more like mental trauma, I'd say." said Park.  He tossed a picture of Harold in a straight jacket onto Arnoldo's desk.

"I think I saw that fat boy chasin' the Jolly Olley Man the other day," said Gerald.  "But when he saw Torvald and me, I think he got the clue." 

* * *

"Where ya goin' Tex?" said Grandma in her Texas accent.  She tipped her cowboy hat at Arnoldo as he walked into the kitchen.  

"Gotta go to school, Grandma."

"Well, you better have some grub for the cattle drive today!"

Arnoldo grabbed a pancake and ran out the door.

"Gotta go, Grandma!"

He got on the bus for free; compliments of the driver who told him not to bother and even said that Arnoldo could have free rides as long as he wanted.

He sat next to Helga.  "Let's speak Italian." He said.  "So how's the casino?" 

She looked into Arnoldo's eyes, those big pools of teal, and a realization hit her.  This was the same Arnold.  Sure, he had a different life, and power now.  And perhaps it had molded him to a certain extent, but she had gotten used to the slicked back hair and Italian suits, and more than ever, his attitude toward her.  She smiled and felt as though a burden had been lifted from her.

"_Molto Bene_."    

* * * 

School.

Mr. Simmons was a complete wreck.  He was so paranoid of Arnoldo that he was afraid that any move he might make would offend the young don.

_Geez, its just a freakin' sandwich, thought Arnoldo, rolling his eyes.  _

"O-ok now, let's l-l-look at com-common denominators."  His eyes rapidly moved to Arnoldo who lounged coolly at his desk.  Besides Arnoldo being there, most of the kids in the room were his soldiers and associates.  

Arnoldo shook his head.

"Uh, Ok!   Let's loo-look at the history of the mafia, or, or as the Italians call it, _La Cosa Nostra._  Arnoldo, would you like to tell the class a little about…?"

Arnoldo nodded and began to explain.

Suddenly, the door flew up and Principal Warts stepped in.  "Arnold, come to my office immediately." He said sternly.

Arnoldo shrugged and followed Warts to his office.  

***

I bet you guys are bored out of your skulls right now and thinking "How long is this story gonna go on for cryin' out loud?!"  Well, it will end sometime!  


	10. The Game

Hey Everyone! Glad I could finally sit down and write the end of this story. It seems the majority of you want Arnoldo to……. well read and find out for cryin' out loud! 

Mafia facts:

The mafia hierarchy consists of--

Don- head of family

Underboss- second in command

Consigliari- counselor

Caporegima (Capo)- Captain

Soldiers- hit men.  They also interrogate and other stuff. Basically they do all the dirty work

Associates - venal politicians, cops, etc who aren't Italian/Sicilian

* * *

"Have a seat Arnold," said Principal Wartz.

Arnoldo felt weird sitting in front of Principal Wartz's desk.  He was usually the one on the other side of the desk.

"Now, Arnold, I'm not sure if this is true or not…_but_ I have from a source- who I will not mention the name of- that you had the winner of the upcoming little league series fixed for your own personal gain.  How a nine-year-old could achieve this is beyond me, but one can never be too cautious."

 "Maybe you don't know who my father is." 

"Young man, I don't _care_ who your father is.  What I care about is if you fixed the little league series."  Principal Wartz walked over to the filing cabinet.  "Now, unless you want this on your permanent record, you are going to tell me the truth.  Understand?"  He pulled out the box that contained the dreaded permanent marker.

            Arnoldo stared into Wartz's eyes.  "No."  He stood up and walked out of the room without shutting the door.  

            "Young man, get right back here, I'm _not_ finished with you!"

The next morning, Principal Wartz found a message from a Mr. Michael Valdini concerning his son Arnoldo.  

***

The Next day; Little League Series between PS119 and PS116

Arnoldo had invited his entire family.  They filled up a whole bleacher at the City Park baseball field.  Arnoldo had even invited his associates; the hall monitors, Mr. Simmons, Principal Wartz, Lorenzo, and the entire student government.  He wanted to see exactly how loyal they were.  He turned around and caught the eye of Antonio Nassadi, who would soon owe him 40 bucks and 3 bags of mini oreos.

"Criminy!" Yelled Helga.  "Hit the stinkin' ball already!"  She threw a piece of hotdog at the catcher so that he wouldn't catch the ball and the PS 119 kid on second base could steal third.  

Arnoldo grinned at Helga.  Yep, they were definitely set to win.  Everyone hushed when Ryan Marco of PS119 stepped up to the plate.  The pitcher pitched a fast one, which grazed Marco's bat and flew into the bleachers

Arnoldo stared at the baseball coming at him.  "Helga, where's my glove?"

"How should I know, I'm not your—"

SMACK!

Everyone gasped when the baseball cracked off of Don Arnoldo's head and knocked him unconscious.  

"Arnold!"  Yelled Helga.  She scooted over to him and pulled his head on her lap.  Everyone gathered around them.  He mumbled something.

"My head…what happened?"  He slightly opened his eyes but the sun was too bright to see much.  He could slightly make out the silhouette of a girl's head hovering over him.  It looked like she had to brooms coming out of her head.  

"Helga?"  

"Arnold!"

_Is my head in her lap?_ he thought.

"I, I, were am I?"  He sat up slightly and looked at his surroundings.  A lot of people, a baseball field…mini oreos…

Oreos? Were did that come from? 

Suddenly, memories of the last two months crashed over him like a tidal wave.  He shook his head.  It couldn't be!  He saw himself ordering people to be taken care of, and not in a good way either!  Then, he remembered the wedding, the wine, speaking Italian, and Stinky as a priest.  What the heck had gotten into him?

"I have to go." He pushed himself up despite feeling dizzy.  

"Wait! Don Arnoldo, you aren't fit to walk yet!"  Park started to kiss his hand, but Arnold pulled it away.  "Stop kissing my hand!" 

He stumbled down the bleachers and caught a bus back to Sunset Arms.  He had never wanted this for himself or for his friends.  He made his way up to his bedroom and collapsed onto his mattress.  It was all to much to take in.  He would need to think about it tomorrow.

***

The next morning

Gerald, Helga, Park, Peapod kid, and some soldiers keeping watch, hovered tentatively around Arnold's door.  

"I wonder what's gotten into him?" said Helga, who feared she already knew the answer.  She wasn't sure she wanted to be around to find out.

"I believe Don Arnoldo suddenly had a relapse in his memory when the baseball hit his head," said Peapod Kid.

"That's what I thought." said Gerald.  "So who's gonna talk to him?  By the way, I'm the one who did it the first time!"

Everyone turned to look at Helga.

"What?" she glared at everyone.

"You _are_ his 'wife'."

"Oh geez, gimme a break!" but inwardly, she sighed.  She never got tired of hearing the word 'wife'.

Gerald handed her a pixy stick.  "Use it as the last resort, ok?"

"But what if he's…you know…"

"Believe me, Arnold always sleeps with clothes on, well at least the Arnold that I remember." Gerald laughed.

She grumbled as she knocked on Arnold's door.  "Hey Football Head!  Open up or I'm comin' in!"

She heard a slight moan and took that as Arnold's way of saying, "Go away".

She flung the door open and shut it behind her.  "Listen, Arnoldo, you need to get out of bed!  There's a lot of people who need you right now!"

He mumbled something Helga couldn't quite understand.

"Speak English, Hair boy!"

He turned his head toward her slightly.  "I said, they don't need me."

"Yes, they do.  Now get up, it's 5:00 and you've been in bed for almost two days."

He turned his head toward the wall.

"Ok, you asked for it!"  She grabbed his face, squeezed his lips open and poured the contents of the pixie stick into his mouth.  He choked on the sugar until it was all down.  

It almost immediately woke him up.  

"Listen, thanks for trying to help, Helga, but I think I need to take a walk alone and clear my mind." 

* * *

He had finally come to terms with what he had been doing, but where to turn now?

He shuffled down the sidewalk and kicked a pebble ahead of him.  He saw the ice cream parlor were he had his last meeting with Big Gino Gambino.  One of Gino's soldiers glared at him from a small French café table.  Maybe Arnold wouldn't be getting icecream after all. 

He had not only changed his own life but the lives of others as well.  Now everyone's lives centered around the family busness.  

All of a sudden, he remembered Arnie when he spotted one of Vincetto's men make his way down the street and disappear into an alley.

Arnold quickened his pace and eventually caught up to Vincetto's soldier, but made sure to keep a safe distance. The kid entered a door behind one of the buildings and Arnold waited behind a trashcan for him to come out again.  

About fifteen minutes later the kid exited the building and Arnold cautiously opened the door.  

"Arnie!" Arnold saw Arnie tied and gagged in a chair, slowly munching on a gag sock.  Arnold shuddered at the thought of eating a dirty sock but figured Arnie probably didn't have a sense of smell or taste and simply thought it was gum.  He quickly untied the knots and pulled Arnie up from the chair.  "C'mon, we gotta go!"

"_Attenda un minuto_!! It's Arnoldo!" said Vincetto who had come into the room.  "I'm surprised you'd be stupid enough to come here yourself.  I guess I was right then.  Boys, take care of 'im."

"Let's go!" Arnold grabbed Arnie's wrist and pulled him down the alley with Vincetto's boys in pursuit.  Where was Torvald when he needed him?

Suddenly, something came over him that he didn't recognize right away.  He pushed Arnie aside and stood in front of Vincetto's soldiers.  It was three against one.  

"C'mon, I'm not afraid of you." 

They looked at eachother and started toward him.

He suddenly charged and slammed his fist into one of their faces.  The other two looked in surprised shock.  This gave Arnold time to grab Arnie and run.  

_So much for being a pacifist_, thought Arnold with a slight grin on his face.  

When they returned to the Sunset Arms, Arnold found Helga, Gerald, and the rest of his gang still waiting.  

"So, any revelations come to you on your walk, Football head?"

"Yeah, actually I did have some."

"Well, spill it, Arnoldo!"

"I realized now that I've started something big, I can't turn it around.  I've got a family to protect now.  I can't just stop doing that.  This is the life we've chosen, and we'll have to keep on living it."

Everyone applauded Arnold's small speech.

"Pretty hot speech, Arnold," said Gerald with a grin.

"Call me Arnoldo," Arnold winked at everyone.  "Let's go to my office and have a toast!"

They all piled into Arnold's office/room and sat around the long glossy table.

Arnold held up his drink.  "To the Valdinis!"

Everyone repeated in unison, "TO THE VALDINIS!"

"_Salut!"_

* * *

Finis


End file.
